Abstract
Following its eradication from the USA, the cattle fever tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (Canestrini), a vector of bovine babesiosis, has made episodic incursions into, and sometimes beyond, an established barrier zone separating tick-free from endemic areas. In large part the incursions involve hosting and transport by wild ungulates, particularly deer and antelope. One approach to disinfest ticks from wild hosts is with food baits medicated to stop parasites. The approach has had mixed success due to factors that have been previously identified with supplemental feeding of wildlife especially competition for the bait, social dominance behavior, and the availability of alternative food sources. Given that not all of the target hosts will intake a therapeutic dose of the medication (ivermectin) at all seasons of the year, an open question is whether the approach is efficacious as a stand-alone treatment or even as part of an integrated program. As detailed in the present study an intensive effort was successful in eradicating a local outbreak of fever ticks.
Highlights
A recalcitrant outbreak of the southern cattle fever tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (Canestrini) (Acari: Ixodidae) in the coastal counties of South Texas threatens the livestock industry in the USA as vectors of bovine babesiosis and bovine anaplasmosis (Tidwell et al 2018)
All harvested deer were inspected and all were found negative for cattle fever ticks
In November-December 2021, 60 adult deer were harvested over 3 weekends under the same circumstances as the prior year and all were free of cattle fever ticks
Summary
A recalcitrant outbreak of the southern cattle fever tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (Canestrini) (Acari: Ixodidae) in the coastal counties of South Texas threatens the livestock industry in the USA as vectors of bovine babesiosis and bovine anaplasmosis (Tidwell et al 2018). Unlike previous southern Texas incursions that are routinely extirpated by the Cattle Fever Tick Eradication Program, the coastal outbreak is centered on. A roadkilled deer at Port Mansfield, a coastal town in Willacy County, TX, was discovered to be infested with cattle fever ticks in May 2018. In situations like this when the deer occupy residential areas, wildlife management can be especially challenging. As charismatic wildlife, presence of the deer is considered desirable by many residents (i.e., those without gardens), but when the deer become carriers of ticks and tick-borne pathogens, the lack of a management plan is unsustainable
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